But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.

I have an Ash tree in my front yard. The Ash was a tree that got a disease and we had to cut about half the tree branches off. It is now recovering. New branches are growing back and covering the damaged area. In a few years, it should be rounded out well, with some pruning. I like this kind of funny looking tree because it reminds me of the battles I deal with in life. Evil comes in and tries to steal our joy and hope. And we must fight it, at times pruning off the contaminated parts of who we are. God’s Spirit does this. Now imagine you had a tree that you transplanted to my home, and it grew up in the middle of a lot of trees. Its root system was narrow, and it had not had to weather much wind and storms. How would it do in my yard by itself when wind, rain, hail, and snow came? Likely not well.

In similar fashion, back in the Jewish society and now, there were and are those who want to make this life comfortable and easy. They insulate themselves from problems and challenges. Their goal is worldly success. They want money, rich food and wine, and popularity.

Well, the rich, well fed, and well thought of are being warned here. So why is this? Is there a specific overt sin that they have committed? I don’t see one. Their sin is the sin of not entering into the spiritual battles in life. They do not fight on the front lines, arm-in-arm with their brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. They gravitate back to safety all the time. Why is this bad? Because they are wasting the gifts God has given them on themselves. They are selfish.

Back to the Ash Tree. Trees under stress build stronger root systems and trees searching for nutrients and water build deeper, wider root systems. This tree can weather the storms of life. The transplanted tree will most likely fall at the first storm presented, without the root supports.

We could look at this passage in reverse fashion too: blessed are the poor, theirs is the kingdom of heaven; blessed are the hungry, they will be filled; blessed are the persecuted, they will have their heavenly reward. Oh, wait, that sounds a lot like The Beatitudes?
So the point is, if you are rich, well fed, and popular, you must examine yourself and your motives to make sure you are not focusing mostly on your own comfort and security. And the caution is … the trials will come, so prepare yourself by following the Lord closely and engaging in his work now. Give and be generous to help those in trouble and need. Be proactive in your faith.

Thank you, Lord, that you recognize the efforts of your children who are working through life’s battles and/or helping others do the same. Keep me humble, hungry, and understanding how poor I really am on my own. You are the power source behind true strength in life!